The issue of multi-disciplinary partnerships (MDPs) has been a hot topic in the Australian legal market for the past decade. So when Andersen Legal came onto the Australian legal scene in the late 1990s, followed closely by its rival PwC Legal, the gossipmongers had a field day.

Would these accountancy-tied law firms prove able to compete in an already very tight and mature legal market? Would clients be taken with the idea of a one-stop shop for both their accounting and legal needs?